Planning, Plans and Surveys

Graph paper is my friend! I’ve been spending a lot of time figuring out potential ground floor layouts for the house. We want to avoid a lot of structural changes to keep costs down, so the focus has been on flow and function. With our double use – home and artist’s residency – it’s important that rooms are multi-functional, and that there is a clear concept of private and public space.

For instance, the kitchen and sitting room will be our personal home, while the dining room and library will be multi-purpose shared spaces. We see the library as also being a music room. Depending on who is in residence it could be a quiet reading, writing or reflecting space, or it could be a cozy place for a band to compose and collaborate. The dining room, while fulfilling my dreams of dinner parties, will also serve as a meeting room or classroom. I’d love to find one of those vintage school blackboards on wheels to keep in there. It’s also the dining room for groups or retreats with a meal package. We are planning to have a kitchenette for self-catering guests, too.

I thought I’d share some of my sketches with you. The kitchen planing has been the most intense! I’ve had to get pretty detailed on appliances and design in order to determine our budget for the space. I’ve really enjoyed it!

Kitchen:

Sitting Room:

Dining Room:Last week the surveyors were here. It was fascinating to watch them take measurements with their instruments. It took three and a half days to plot all of the points! Next, those go into a computer program and essentially they connect the dots to make an accurate plan of the house. I’ll share some of the blueprints when we get them.

What do you think of our plans? Nothing is set in stone (except, literally, the walls) and we’d love your feedback. Share your ideas & suggestions in the comments!